


Lord of the Christmas

by UncleSheo



Category: The Lord of the Rings (Movies), The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, gandalf is santa, lord of the rings but christmas, modern setting - sort of?, very silly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-22
Packaged: 2018-09-07 03:47:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8781727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UncleSheo/pseuds/UncleSheo
Summary: When Santadalf finds a cursed artifact that corrupts all around it, he sends his head elf Frodo on a quest to destroy it. Together with a small group of other Christmas elves, they set out for the Sahara Desert to destroy the artifact. Their journey leads them to a quaint university with even quainter students, suspicious cloaked figures and... talking Christmas trees? Now they must race against the clock to save Christmas spirit before it's too late.
This is a short story written for the annual Christmas Play Writing Competitions at my university.





	1. The Cursed Ring

It was a dark winter night, the kind of night that isn’t stormy or nasty per se, but feels so anyway. It was the kind of night that was best spent with a hot cocoa, a blanket and a good book. Not a night anyone should be working in, for it was not a night that bode well.  
It was also exactly a week before Christmas, and Santandalf had a big problem.  
The weird thing was that Santandalf almost hadn’t noticed this problem. In fact, everything had gone quite smoothly. The dwarves were way ahead on schedule with toy-making, and their craftsmanship was a marvel to behold as always. The elves were all busily scurrying around, making sure everything went as planned. The reindeer were ready for work, and even the Christmas trees were moving along just fine. There had just been a little ting, barely noticeable yet definitely there. Something hung in the air, something bad. The halls of the workshop weren’t as joyous as they should be, the reindeer were cranky, and the decorations simply didn’t shine as bright as they should. Something just a little off. A little… wrong.  
It did not take long to find the source of these troubles. A cursed artifact, a small golden ring inscribed with a tongue from a long forgotten age. Santandalf didn’t know where it came from, or how it got there. Perhaps one of the elves took it inside and forgot about it? Oh well. It didn’t matter much. What mattered was that it had to get destroyed, and quick, because Santandalf had the feeling that this ring could mean the end for this year’s Christmas.  
Keeping the ring safe behind lock and key, Santandalf devised a clever plan. They wouldn’t be able to just get rid of this ring like that. No, it had to be specially destroyed, or else it wouldn’t work, and the ring’s ill effect would continue to linger.  
But with this plan, that shouldn’t be a problem, Santandalf thought. Confidently, he walked into the workshop. A few elves looked up, slightly confused. Their boss didn’t come down all that often, unless something was going on, which worried them slightly. Even Santandalf’s wife, who had been serving some tea and coffee to the elves, wasn’t entirely sure what was going on and decided to keep an eye on the happening.  
“Good, uhm,” Santandalf said, glancing quickly at his watch, “Good morning, everyone! Can I have your attention please?” Within the second, all eyes and ears were pointed towards him. “Thank you. As some of you might already know, we’re having a bit of a problem here. We have some sort of cursed artifact, a ring, and it must be destroyed or Christmas will be ruined.”  
For a short moment, it was quiet, until the elves started talked, all through each other.  
“Destroying an artifact?”  
“That can’t be too hard, can it?”  
“Can’t we just let the dwarves smelt it?”  
“I’m afraid it isn’t that simple,” Santandalf said, “The ring has magical powers, and must be destroyed in a specific way. It has to be broken within the hottest fire known to man. That is not something we can do on the North pole. No, we must search for a far warmer place – the Sahara Desert.” A few elves gasped in shock. “Everyone must understand that this is a task of great importance. This is also the reason why I am entrusting this with my Head Elf, Frodo. I’m confident that he can bring this quest to a good end.”  
The elf in question tried to mutter a retort, but his words were soon drowned out by the cries of the other elves.  
“Alone? Is that a good idea?”  
“That can’t end well, he’ll be crying in a corner before he’s even left the North Pole.”  
“Yeah, he’s so whiney…”  
“It is certainly a perilous journey,” Santandalf said, “So I’ve decided that someone should go with him. Any volunteers?”  
“Not it!” came the outcry of all of the other elves.  
At this same moment, another elf walked in, one that went by the name of Sam. Immediately, all eyes were focused on him as he looked around the room in confusion.  
“What’s going on he-“ he started, before being dragged into the madness.  
“Can’t he do it?” one of the elves asked.  
“Do what?” Sam said, but his question remained mostly unanswered.  
Santandalf looked from Sam to Frodo to the group, and then back to Sam.   
“Very well,” he said, “Sam will be the one to escort Frodo and the ring to the Sahara Desert.”  
Frodo and Sam quickly exchanged glances, not entirely sure what to think about it, but then resigned themselves to their task. Someone had to do it, after all. In the meanwhile, Santandalf walked to his wife.  
“Dear?” he asked.  
“What is it?” she responded.  
“Can you get it?”  
“What do you mean? Oh, wait, the ring, right? Of course, I’ll be right back.”  
Mrs. Claus scurried out of the room. Santandalf watched her leave, but then turned his attention back to the elves.  
“It will be a long journey, but I have faith in you two,” Santandalf said, “You must travel far and wide. It will be dangerous, but don’t forget that you are not alone. There is an elven encampment in Europe, there you can find reinforcements. They can help guide you to your destination. I’ve already sent word of your journey, so they will expect your arrival.”  
Sam and Frodo nodded. Silence temporarily filled the room, but then, as if by magic, Mrs. Claus entered the room, the clicking of her heels announcing her arrival. She hurried over to Santandalf, a small ring between her fingers.  
“You have it?” Santadalf asked, to which his wife nodded, “That’s great, then we can get to business.” He took the ring from Mrs. Claus’ hands, and then held it up high, showing it to all of his elves. “This is the source of our problems. It must be destroyed.” Turning himself towards Frodo, he gently put the ring on the palm of the elf’s hand. “It will be destroyed.”  
“The ring,” Frodo mused, quickly examining the curious object. Some sort of energy seemed to emanate from it, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. “I will bring it to the Sahara Desert, and make sure it gets properly destroyed.”  
“Good,” Santandalf said. He took a deep breath and then sighed. “Well then, I think it’s best if you’d get on your way now. Come on everyone, it’s time to get back to work.”  
Just like that, the hall seemed to empty. Frodo and Sam left one way, while Santandalf and the other elves went the other way, leaving Mrs. Claus all alone. She was about to leave to do her work as well, when something crossed her mind. Panic shot through her mind as she fidgeted through her pockets. Unfortunately, her suspicions were confirmed when she found the small object in her pockets. Holding it in her hands, she sighed to herself and shook her head.  
“Well, fuck.”


	2. The Journey to Europe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Frodo meets some of his new travelling companions...

“So, where’d ya have to go again?”  
Unfortunately, leaving had not gone as quietly as Frodo had hoped. Before they could even leave the building, Sam and Frodo had been ambushed by two of the other elves, Merry and Pippin. The two had heard some of Santandalf’s announcement, but far from all, and now their curiosity had taken over, so they were just continuously asking questions.  
“We have to go to the Sahara Desert,” Frodo said, “To destroy this ring.”  
He held the ring up, which met with some murmurs of awe.  
“Sounds dangerous,” Pippin said, biting a piece of the candy can he was eating, “I don’t think the Sahara Desert is a place Christmas elves should go.”  
“Yeah,” Merry chimed in, “What if you melt?”  
“Melt?” Frodo repeated, a somewhat shocked expression on his face, “But I don’t want to melt…”  
“You won’t,” Sam sighed, repressing the need to roll his eyes, “It’s just a desert and we only have to be there for a little while anyway. We’ll be fine.”  
“Are you sure?” Frodo said.  
“Of course!” Sam said, “Now, we really have to get moving, or else we’re going to miss the boat to Europe.”  
“Oh, you’re going to Europe?” Merry asked, “We’ve always wanted to go to Europe, right, Pip?”  
“Absolutely,” Pippin said, “I’ve heard it’s a great place to be. Lovely weather and everything.”  
For a moment, the two elves were quiet. They exchanged glances, grinned to each other, and then broke out in unison:  
“Can we come with you?”  
“I promise we won’t be in the way,” Merry said.  
“We can even help you,” Pippin said.  
“Please?” they said in unison again.  
“Uhm…” Frodo said, “That’s…” He looked at Sam, who seemed to understand this situation about as well as Frodo did. “I don’t think it should be a problem. I mean, there should be enough space on the boat, right?”  
Barely having spoken these words, and he was already lauded in ‘thank yous’ and happy squealing. And then they even hugged him! Frodo was immediately regretting this decision.

 

In the meantime, a meeting was taking place in a dark figure. A figure cloaked in black stood on a small platform, surrounded by some others. These others were people dressed in black hoods, wearing sunglasses but also brightly colored tights.   
“You must get the ring,” the cloaked figure said.  
“We understand,” said one of the hooded people.  
“It is important,” the cloaked figure said, “It cannot be destroyed. I cannot lose it.”  
The hooded people nodded, and then turned around and left the room.

 

The journey took the heroes southwards, over stormy sea and treacherous ocean, all the way to the quaint little town of Middelburg, the Netherlands. Frodo had, of course, gotten seasick during the trip, so they decided to take a small break before heading further into Europe.  
But Middelburg is also home to a vibrant community of students, who really weren’t sure what to think of these four weird little elves in their town. Two of these students in question were Aragorn and Boromir, who were in Elliott, the common house, having what was supposed to be productive study session.  
“I drank too much last night, didn’t I?” Aragorn groaned.  
“Yup,” Boromir said plainly.  
He glanced up from his study books and looked outside the window. Aragorn just sighed and took a sip from what was probably his fourth coffee this morning. He looked at Boromir with tired eyes, before continuing to speak.  
“I’m going to stop drinking,” Aragorn said, rubbing two fingers over his temple. By god, this headache was terrible. “No more parties for me. I really need to focus on my courses right now.”  
“Yeah right,” Boromir said, trying not to chuckle, “Like that’s ever going to happen.”  
“I mean it, Boromir!” Aragorn said.  
“You say that all the time,” Boromir said, “And yet I find you and your drunken ramblings under my window every Tuesday night.”  
“This time it’s for real, I swear,” Aragorn said.  
“Of course,” Boromir said, but he didn’t sound all too convinced.   
Eyes still focused on the road outside, he thought saw something, but he quickly dismissed the idea. He looked back to his book and paged through it, even though he could barely understand what this article was about. Who even wrote these things? He sighed and immediately got distracted again, this time by a girl entering the common house. She seemed a little weird, wearing a dark hoodie and sunglasses, combined with the most awful, neon-colored stockings possible. He didn’t recognize her, but didn’t think too much of it. After all, he probably didn’t know half of the first semesters.  
Maybe he should have cared more, because this was not just any girl. No, she was one of Santandalf’s elves, but a dark and twisted version. Instead of cheerful, she was devious and cunning. She was also sent on a mission, to find Frodo and retrieve the ring.  
“So, have you heard the talk of the day?” Boromir asked.  
“What do mean?” Aragorn asked, “Did I miss something?”  
“Apparently there’s a couple of weirdos walking through Middelburg,” Boromir said.  
“That’s hardly new,” Aragorn chuckled.  
“They look like elves,” Boromir said, “You know, the Christmassy kind? And no one knows exactly who they are or where they came from. Well, of course there’s stories, but there’s always stories.”  
“Hah, that’s weird,” Aragorn said, “Wouldn’t know anything about it though.”  
With those words spoken, the dark elf took a little more interest in the two. Trying to remain subtle about it, she inched closer, hoping to learn some more about Frodo and his whereabouts. Unfortunately, Aragorn and Boromir had some other things on their minds.  
“Anyway, think we should head to class?” Boromir asked, standing up and putting his books in his bag, “Not sure about you, but I’ve got anthropology in ten minutes. Hopefully Friedman can shine some light on whatever this stupid article is supposed to say.”  
Aragorn nodded slowly, finished his coffee quickly and stood up as well.   
“You had to go to Franklin, right?” he asked, to which Boromir nodded, “Great, me too.”  
The two left Elliott, heading towards their school building, all while complaining about their professors and not noticing that the dark elf was, in fact, following them outside.


	3. An (Un)fortunate Meeting

“So, we’re in Europe now?” Frodo asked, “Weren’t we supposed to find some sort of elven encampment here?”  
“Erm, yes,” Sam said, carefully studying his map, “But this is not the right Europe.”  
“What does that even mean?” Pippin asked.   
“We’re just in the wrong part, that’s all,” Sam said, “Apparently, the encampment is in a forest, so we have to find that first.”  
“And how are we supposed to do that?” Merry asked.  
“Well, if we take a right here, and then,” Sam said, turning his map around, “A left there? Or maybe another right? Er…. I think we have to go that way.”  
Sam gestured wildly at one of the many streets. The other elves looked towards each other and then shrugged. Sam probably knew what he was doing right? Sam sighed and started to walk, eyes still on his map. In hindsight, that might have been a little stupid. He turned around the corner, closely followed by his fellow elves. They didn’t get very far though, as they bumped into Aragorn and Boromir just after taking their turn to the right. People tripped over each other, bag were spilled, and the ring slipped out of Frodo’s pocket, rolling onto the street.  
“What. The. Hell,” Aragorn said, rubbing his head as he had hurt it during the fall, “What just happened?”  
Everyone was a little confused for a moment, and also bruised, and it took some time for them to get back to their senses. All, that was, except for Frodo, who had felt the ring slip from his grasp and was now panicking about where it could be and how they were ever going to get it back.  
“Oh no,” he muttered, becoming more nervous with every word, “The ring! Where is it?”  
Immeadiatly, the other elves looked up, seeming kind of shocked at this development, and started to look around to find it. Boromir and Aragorn, however, had no idea about what was going on here, so they just stared at the elves blankly.   
“A ring?” Aragorn asked, “What do you even need a ring for?”  
“It’s very important,” Frodo said, starting to lose all hope. What if they didn’t find it? What would happen with Christmas then? “And now I’ve gone and lost it... I had promised to keep it safe, and now… and now it’s all over!”  
“Is this it?” Boromir asked, picking up a ring from the ground. He studied it intently, not entirely sure what to think about it. There seemed to be some sort of power in it, but he really didn’t know what it could be.  
“Uh, yes, actually,” Frodo said. For a moment he just stared, unblinking, but then he regained his composure. “That’s it.”  
“Well, that’s great,” Boromir said. He stood up and offered a hand to the others, to help them stand up, before giving the ring to Frodo. “Are you guys okay?”  
“I think so,” Merry said.  
“I’ve got a bruise on my knee,” Pippin said, “But otherwise I’m fine.”  
“What were you even doing?” Aragorn asked.  
“We were, uh,” Frodo started, trying to think of a convincing lie in the meanwhile, “We were…. Travelling. Yes. Travelling. Totally.”  
The other elves quickly exchanged glances and then started nodding. Aragorn frowned and Boromir raised an eyebrow, both not entirely sure what to think about the situation.  
“Right,” Aragorn said, “I guess we’ll all be on our way then.”  
“Yeah,” Boromir said, “Good luck with whatever you needed that ring for.”  
Wanting to leave for their courses, Aragorn and Boromir walked on, leaving the elves alone. This, however, did not take very long, as the two were back with seconds, hands raised and walking backwards. The shady elf from earlier was driving them back, but this time she was not alone. Two other elves had joined her, and they were all dressed the same and holding candy canes that were sharpened and ready for battle.  
“Well, this is not how I had expected my day to go,” Boromir said.  
“Give us the ring, now!” the shady elf said, raising the candy cane, “Or you’ll get to meet the sharp side of this sucker.”  
“They’re onto us!” Frodo said, “Oh, what do we do now?”   
“You give us the ring, nice and easy,” one of the other shady elves said.  
“Just behave, and then we’ll let you go,” the last elf said, “We don’t need anything else. Just the ring.”  
“But we can’t give it to you!” Frodo cried out.  
“Are you looking for a fight?” the shady elf said, “Because I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”  
“No,” Frodo said.  
“Then give us the ring,” another shady elf said.  
“No,” Frodo said again.  
The shady elves looked at each other, giving the others just the time necessary to turn around and run away as fast as possible. Merry and Pippin had been the first two to go, but Boromir and Aragorn quickly took the lead, dragging the group into one of the campus locations as quickly as possible. There they hid behind some couches (much to the dismay of the security guard) and waited for the shady elves to pass and hopefully lose them.   
“I think we’re safe,” Merry muttered as he stood up slowly.  
But that was the moment at which the shady elves walked past, looking around frantically. As quickly as possible, Pippin pulled Merry down, all while shushing him to keep quiet. The group watched as the dark elves walked through the room, stopping to look behind walls and plants and everything. For a moment it seemed as if one of the shady elves would find the hiding place, but then their attention was taking by something else.  
“I think I saw something outside!” one of the other shady elves shouted, “We should go out and take a look!”  
Nodding, the other two dark elves followed their leader outside, leaving the Christmas elves and the two students alone. They sighed in relief, waited for a minute more, and then left their hiding place.  
“What was that all about?” Aragorn asked, “Who are they? And what do they want with you?”  
“I don’t know,” Frodo sighed.  
“They wanted that ring, right?” Boromir asked, “What so special about the thing anyway?”  
Frodo took a deep breath and bit his lip. He didn’t think he should tell the humans about what was going on, but with the chase that had just happened, it felt like he had no choice.  
“You have to promise to keep it a secret,” Frodo said.  
“Of course,” Aragorn said, “We are excellent secret-keepers, aren’t we, Bor?”  
“No, we’re not,” Boromir said, but he was mostly ignored.  
“The ring is a dangerous artefact,” Frodo started, “It ruins good cheer and darkens the Christmas spirit of all those that come into contact with it. It has to be destroyed, otherwise Christmas will be ruined, possibly forever! But, for that, we have to travel far, for the ring can only be destroyed in the Sahara Desert.”  
“Right. So do you need any help with that?” Aragorn asked.  
“Aragorn, what are you doing?” Boromir asked.  
“I don’t feel like writing my Stats paper,” Aragorn said, shrugging, “And I’m sure Dijksterhuis will accept ‘saving the spirit of Christmas’ as a valid reason for an extension.”  
“Of course,” Boromir said, “Well, this seems very important and everything. Plus, I don’t think these guys will get very far with those goons following them.”  
“See, that’s what I mean!” Aragorn said, before turning his attention to the elves, “So, can we join?”  
The elves looked at each other and then formed a small circle. They whispered loudly, but just not loud enough to be heard, as they discussed their options. After a minute or so of this, they turned back to Aragorn and Boromir.  
“We’ve decided that you can join,” Frodo said, “But only if you know how to handle the map.”  
“Well, I’ve done some Geography before, how hard could it be?” Aragorn said, taking the map from Sam, “So, where are we headed?”


	4. The Council

The first stop they made between Middelburg and the Sahara Desert was a forest further on in Europe. It was a strange forest, one that seemed quiet yet teeming with life. It seemed to be a world of untouched wilderness, and the home to many a Christmas elf that wasn’t currently stationed at the North Pole.  
As the group wandered through the forest, they were in awe of the many sights there were to see. The forest was a peaceful place, that almost made them forget all of their problems. That was, until they walked into what seemed to be one of the most important elves in the forest.  
“Frodo and company, I presume?” the elf said, to which the group nodded, “You are with more than I had expected.”  
“We kind of picked some people up on the road,” Frodo explained quickly.  
“Ah well, it does not matter much,” the elf said, “The more, the merrier, I suppose. Anyway, please come with me.”  
The leader elf walked further into the forest, expecting the others to follow him. The group stood still for a moment, but then ran after the elf. They didn’t want to get lost in the forest after all. It took a bit of walking to get to their destination, and along the whole road it felt as if they were being watched. That was probably true, as there were curious elves in all of the trees, waiting for what would happen.  
They ended up in a small clearing, where rocks were put in a circle to service as chairs. The leader elf sat down and gestured the others to do so too. Then he clapped in his hands twice, loudly, and another group of people emerged from the bushes, joining them in the circle. Most of them had been elves, but there was one dwarf too, who was tinkering on a small wooden toy.  
“We gather round today to discuss a pressing matter,” the leader elf started, “As I’ve been told, Frodo is possession of a mysterious ring that must be destroyed. However, the journey is harsh, and he cannot do it alone. That is why we have been asked to provide with extra hand, and supplies.” He looked around the circle, and when he saw that everyone was listening intently, he continued. “So, today I ask help of the other elves of this forest. Who is brave enough to escort Frodo on his perilous quest to the Sahara Desert.”  
“Heh,” the dwarf chuckled, finally moving his attention from his tinkering, “Don’t think you should send another elf. You should send someone hardier. Like me.”  
“Are you… implying something, Gimli?” another elf said.  
“Oh, be realistic here, Legolas,” Gimli said, “Someone like you wouldn’t last a day out there.”  
“That is not true,” Legolas said firmly.  
“Yeah?” Gimli said, “Think you can handle the heat?”  
The elf snorted and turned his head, gazing off into the distance.  
“Certainly,” he said, “And as a matter of fact, I am joining the quest.”  
“Oh really?” Gimli said, “Well, I guess I should go too then, if only to prove you wrong.”  
Legolas harrumphed and rolled his eyes. The Leader elf frowned, but then looked at the rest of the circle.  
“If there are no other volunteers,” he said, and it remained awfully quiet, “Very well. It appears we have fellowship. I wish you the best of luck on your journey.”

 

They had stayed in the forest that night, for it was late when the meeting had come to an end and they were warned against travelling through the night. They had been given supplies, trinkets mostly, but also some weapons, and a place to sleep, but not everyone had been able to sleep that easily. While Frodo, Merry and Pippin had been sound asleep, the rest had been a little more restless. Sam just couldn’t quite fall asleep, Gimli sat on a tree stump, lost in thought, Legolas sat perched on a tree branch, overlooking the rest, and Boromir was reconsidering his life decisions.  
And Aragorn? He hadn’t actually stayed with the group that night. He had wandered off into the forest. It had just been an excuse to stretch his legs at first, but then he found that the walk was actually very relaxing. Something here made him feel happy, and the forest was very peaceful and soothing. And that is when he met her…  
She had been a particularly cute elf, going by the name of Arwen. A gentle soul, whose kindness was visible in her eyes, that was the only way Aragorn could describe her. He had found her standing in the pale moonlight between the trees, looking up to the stars and singing quietly to herself. It took some time for her to notice Aragorn, and when she did, she turned around, a questioning look on her face.  
“Hello,” Arwen said softly.  
“Uh, hi?” Aragorn said.  
Neither of them knowing what to say next, they fell into a short yet uncomfortable silence.   
“Can I help you?” Arwen asked, finally breaking the silence.  
“No, it’s just…” Aragorn said, “I just couldn’t fall asleep.”  
“Others don’t come here often,” Arwen said, “I hadn’t expected anyone to visit.”  
“I’m sorry,” Aragorn said, “I didn’t mean to.”  
“It’s all right,” Arwen said, smiling slightly, “A beautiful place like this should be seen by more eyes.”  
“It sure is magnificent,” Aragorn said. He sat down and looked up, gazing at the stars. For a moment, they spent their time in silence again, but this time it was a lot less uncomfortable.  
“My name is Arwen,” the elf said, a gentle smile on her lips, “What is yours?”  
“I’m Aragorn,” Aragorn said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

 

With dawn came the singing of birds and the chirping of insects. Life came back to the slumbering forest and everyone knew exactly what that meant: it was time to go. Everyone was packing their bags and getting ready for the journey.  
Checking the contents of his bag meticulously for one last time, Sam finally decided that he had everything he needed and closed his bag.  
“So, that should be everything,” he said, and then looked to the rest.  
“As long as we have what counts most, we’re fine,” Frodo said, putting on a shoe in what must have been the mostly clumsy way imaginable.   
Sam nodded slowly and then flung the bag over his shoulder.  
“Well, I guess we’re almost ready to go then,” he said, “Unless someone still has urgent business to attend to.”  
Everyone looked up. Most of them were almost done, still putting the last things in their bag or putting their shoes on, but Legolas had still been brushing his hair and Pippin was already done with everything, so he was pestering Merry. Luckily it did not take a lot of time for them to finish preparing, but when they were ready to leave, Arwen came running towards them, much to everyone’s surprise.  
“Aragorn!” she said.  
“Arwen?” Aragorn said, “What are you doing here?”   
“I came to wish you good luck,” Arwen said.  
“Aww, thank you,” Aragorn said, smiling broadly.  
“And I wanted you to have this,” Arwen said, carefully tying a necklace around Aragorn’s neck, “Please come back to the forest when you finish your quest. After all that we spoke about last night, I want to get to know you better.”  
“I will,” Aragorn said.  
“Promise?”  
“Promise.”


	5. Betrayal?

The next few days they found themselves mostly walking. They travelled for enormous lengths, only sometimes being pestered by the shady elves that somehow kept on finding them, no matter how far they went or how quietly they travelled. No one really knew what the goons were doing or what their plans were, but they did seem hell-bent on getting that ring, even if it meant getting violent. Fortunately, the group had been able to escape from the shady elves every time so far, but everyone really wished the goons would just leave them alone for once.  
One day, after all of that travelling, the group decided to set up camp for the night. Sam was cooking at their campfire while the rest was just minding their own business. Frodo had been lying down and staring at the sky, Aragorn was looking at his necklace and lost in thought, Gimli was still working on that one wooden toy, Boromir was throwing rocks into a nearby lake, Legolas was looking into the distance dramatically and Merry and Pippin were trying to play pranks on the others. All in all, it was a fairly normal evening for them, and one that seemed quite calm at that.  
“I don’t think I can do this,” Frodo sighed.  
“Of course you can, mister Frodo,” Sam said, “You just gotta believe in yourself.”  
“But the ring,” Frodo said, “It’s such a burden…”  
“It’ll all be fine,” Sam said, “And we’re all here to help you.”  
“I guess you’re right,” Frodo said.  
Sam smiled and stirred through the soup. He tasted a little bit of it, nodded approvingly, and then started getting the bowls to hand out the food.  
“Dinner’s ready,” Sam said. Almost immediately, everyone starting forming a circle around him as he started to hand out the bowls with food.  
They sat and ate for a moment, not really talking all that much, except for the occasional comment that the food tasted good. Regardless, it turned to be a pretty decent evening, as silence turned to casual chatting and joking. Everyone seemed fairly optimistic about their quest. Well, everyone except for Frodo, who had distanced himself slightly from the group, lost in thought.  
After some time, as the sun made way for the moon, people started getting tired and decided to go to bed. When most of the group had bundled themselves up in their bedrolls, Sam and Frodo had been the only ones left awake. They sat and talked for a bit (even if Frodo was a little unresponsive) until Sam too decided it was time for bed.  
“Well, I think I’m going to bed,” Sam said, yawning loudly, “How about you, mister Frodo? You need your sleep too.”  
“Hmm,” Frodo said, “I guess I’ll join in a moment.”  
“Right,” Sam said, lying down into his bedroll, “Good night then.”  
“Good night,” Frodo said.  
Frodo sighed. For a moment he stayed still, until he thought everyone was asleep. Then he stood up and walked away from the group, into the forest nearby.  
What he hadn’t noticed was that a sleepless Boromir had been watching him, and followed him into the forest.

 

The crisp, cold winds of the forest blew through the branches, sounding much like whispers in the night. Most of the leaves had fallen some time ago, leaving the trees bare and spiky. Even though he didn’t feel the cold per se, Frodo shivered. This was not a very nice place to be.  
“Frodo!” came Boromir’s voice from the distance.  
Frodo froze in place. This was unexpected. And very much not what he wanted. But there was not a whole lot he was able to about it now. Behind him, he heard Boromir’s heavy footsteps as the man ran towards the elf. Slowly, Frodo turned around, coming to face Boromir.  
“Frodo, wait!” Boromir said, “What are you doing?”  
“I wanted to take a walk,” Frodo said plainly, “I needed to get my mind of things.”  
“The ring, isn’t it?” Boromir asked. He sat down and gestured Frodo to do the same.  
“Yes,” Frodo said, reluctantly sitting down next to Boromir.  
“Is it… Bothering you?” Boromir asked.  
“Of course it is!” Frodo said, “But you wouldn’t get it anyway. You’ve never carried a cursed artefact with you.”  
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…” Boromir started, but then lost track of his sentence, “But what if I carried it for you?”  
Silence filled the air for a moment as Frodo stared at Boromir in disbelief. The sound of creaking branches was carried on the wind as Frodo slowly backed off, trying to create more distance between the two of them.  
“No,” Frodo said softly, but getting more firm with every word, “Don’t be daft. You shouldn’t handle the ring. There is some kind of power in it that shouldn’t get out, no matter what. That’s why I must carry it. To keep it safe.”  
“You see, that’s where you and I disagree,” Boromir said, “If there’s power in that ring, why don’t we use it? I felt it’s potential when I picked it up from the street. Just think of the possibilities. Think of what I… Uh, we, could all do!”  
“I can’t let you do that!” Frodo said, making sure he was holding the ring firmly.  
“With that kind of power, the possibilities are endless,” Boromir said, “Just think about it! We could make this world a better place. We could solve so many problems. Hell, we could solve world hunger! If only I had that ring…”  
“No, you can’t have it!” Frodo cried out, “You don’t understand the dark powers of this ring! It’ll control you, corrupt you. It cannot be allowed to be used, or it will only end in disaster!”  
“Fine,” Boromir said, “If you will not give it to me, then I must take it by force.”  
With those words, Boromir lunged at Frodo, who shrieked and tried to dodge out of harm’s way. Unfortunately, Boromir was surprisingly quick, and managed to get a hold of Frodo’s wrists. They struggled, Frodo to escape and Boromir to keep that from happening. Boromir desperately kept Frodo pinned and was just about to take the ring from Frodo’s fingers when the sounds of footsteps came from the forest surrounding them.  
From between the trees, dark elves charged at the two. Boromir shot up. He couldn’t see exactly how many of them there where, but he knew for sure that they were very much outnumbered. Frodo took this moment of confusion to escape from Boromir’s grip. The dark elves charged at them. Frodo ran away, followed closely by some of the elves, while the other dark elves ganged up on Boromir. Almost defenseless, Boromir barely stood a chance against their attacks.  
“The ring!” one of the dark elves hissed, “Where is it?”  
“You’re not getting it,” Boromir said.  
“Why you…” the dark elf growled, “Who do you think you are?”  
“Give it up,” another dark elf said, “Or else.”  
“I can’t,” Boromir said, “Even if I wanted to.”  
One of the dark elves jumped into an attack again, but Boromir barely managed to deflect it with a punch. The other dark elves joined into the fight, and Boromir fought back as well as he could. But, as he was being severely outnumbered, he didn’t stand much of a chance. While distracted by one elf, another took the chance to stab him in the gut with a candy cane. Boromir groaned and toppled over, clutching his arms around himself in pain.  
It was at that moment that others joined the fray.  
“There he is!” Aragorn shouted from the distance.  
Aragorn charged at the fight, sword in hand. Even though it had been the first time he had properly wielded a sword, he wore it with confidence. He was followed by Gimli and Legolas, and the three of them worked together to get rid of the dark elves. It didn’t take long for them to do so – seeing as how they were now outmatched, the dark elves decided to flee into the night.  
Taking a moment to regain his breath, Aragorn’s eye fell on Boromir, who had been lying on the ground, breathing irregularly. Aragorn knelt next to Boromir and laid his hand on Boromir’s.  
“Aragorn,” Boromir said softly.  
“Boromir,” Aragorn said, “What happened? Are you going to be all right? Is anyone here a doctor?”  
“They ambushed us,” Boromir said, “Me and Frodo. And I… I tried to get the ring from Frodo. I don’t know what came over, and now…”  
“Shush,” Aragorn said, “It’s all right now.”  
“But it’s not!” Boromir said, “If I hadn’t done this, then none of this would have happened. Oh, I’m such a mistake…”  
“You’re still a hero to me, Bor,” Aragorn said, “Just… Stay with me, okay? We’ll get help and it’s all going to be fine.”  
“It’s not,” Boromir said.  
He groaned, trying to stay conscious but failing at it. As he found his mind becoming hazy, Boromir looked up to Aragorn to face him one last time.  
“Could you… Could you please tell him I’m sorry?” Boromir asked.  
With those words, Boromir blew out his last breath. Aragorn started sobbing softly, entirely unsure of what to do. He had never expected things could go this wrong and now he wished they would have never went on this wretched journey.  
“I will,” Aragorn said, “I promise.”  
He held Boromir’s hand tight and cried. Gimli and Legolas knelt next to Aragorn and tried to console him. Gimli wrapped an arm around Aragorn and Legolas looked into the distance, forlorn and muttering something in elvish. Aragorn looked up to the stars and sighed.  
“Good night, my friend,” he said softly.


	6. The Breaking of the Fellowship

They had found Frodo back at the camp, where he had luckily managed to escape out of the clutches of the dark elf. Unfortunately, however, it also seemed that Merry and Pippin were missing, leaving only Sam in the camp. Frodo looked around, confused and a little bit scared, but then nudged Sam to wake him up.  
“Sam,” Frodo said, “Sam, wake up.”  
“Just five more minutes…” Sam muttered, still half asleep.  
“Just wake up, will you?” Frodo said, “Everyone’s gone, and I don’t know what to do!”  
“What?” Sam said, finally waking up, “No no no, that can’t be true, can it?”  
“The camp is empty,” Frodo said, “I don’t know where anyone is.”  
“Oh, that’s bad,” Sam said, “That’s really, really bad.”  
“I know,” Frodo said, but then he fell quiet for a moment, ‘Wait, did you hear that?”  
“Hear what?” Sam said, but he was immediately shushed by Frodo.  
From the forest came a small group of people: Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas. All three of them looked very haggard as they walked towards the camp slowly.  
“You’re back!” Frodo said, “But where… where are the others?”  
“Boromir is no longer among us,” Legolas said sadly.  
“Wait, you mean like…” Sam started.  
Legolas didn’t give much of an answer, safe for a short nod, but this small gesture gave more than enough information.  
“Oh no,” Frodo squeaked, “That can’t be possible…”  
“But then where are Merry and Pippin?” Sam asked, “Please don’t tell me they also…”  
“They’re not here?” Gimli asked, to which Sam and Frodo shook their heads, “They were still at the camp when we left.”  
“What could have happened to them?” Frodo asked.  
“I don’t know,” Aragorn said, “Except… Those dark elves must have taken them!”  
“Of course!” Legolas said, “They have been after us all this time, so they probably took their chance and abducted Merry and Pippin!”  
“But then we must go and look for them,” Gimli said, “Who knows what they’re planning to do with them.”  
Frodo sank to his knees, holding his head in his hands.  
“This is all my fault,” he muttered, “First Boromir, then Merry and Pippin. It’s all because of me.”  
“Calm down, mister Frodo,” Sam said, “We can solve this.”  
“Yes,” Frodo said, “And for that, I’ll have to go out there alone. I won’t be endangering anyone’s lives anymore.”  
“I will go with you,” Sam said.  
“Don’t you understand?” Frodo said, “It’s too dangerous!”  
“I promised to stay by your side,” Sam said, “And I intend to keep that promise.”  
“Sam,” Frodo said softly, before looking up to the rest.  
“Go on then,” Aragorn said, “We’ll make sure that Merry and Pippin are found again.”  
Frodo nodded, stood up and started to walk away, closely followed by Sam. Looking around for tracks or any other hints as to where Merry and Pippin could have gone, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas combed through their environment, before also walking away, in the exact opposite direction of where Frodo had gone.

 

Travelling mostly in silence, Sam and Frodo soon found themselves walking through an unruly wilderness path. It was quite difficult to maneuver through, but they somehow managed. As they walked, Frodo held the ring in hand, studying it and wondering how such a small item could cause so much harm.  
He probably should’ve kept his eyes on the road instead.  
Frodo tripped over a particularly gnarly tree root, as he didn’t quite look at where he was going. The ring slipped from his fingers, and rolled off into the distance. Swearing under his breath softly, Frodo stood up again and looked at Sam.  
“Did you see it?” Frodo asked, “Where the ring went?”  
“You didn’t drop it, did you?” Sam asked.  
“…maybe?” Frodo said, looking a bit sad, somehow.  
Sam sighed. This was not going to end well…  
“Well, it should be around here somewhere, right?” he said, “I mean, it couldn’t have gotten that far by itself.”  
Frodo nodded slowly, and then looked in the direction which he thought the ring had gone.  
“We should go look for it,” he said, to which Sam nodded.  
And so they did. They walked a little farther over the path, making sure to keep an eye on the road, in the hope that they would find the ring again. Strangely enough, they found the ring pretty quickly, even though they hadn’t really expected to find it in this manner.  
Just around the bend sat a strange figure. It looked as if it might have once been an elf, but not anymore, almost seeming corrupted somehow. Hunched over, the figure was stroking the ring, all while calling it all kinds of pet names.  
“My precious,” it said, oblivious that it was being watched by Frodo and Sam.  
“He’s got the ring,” Frodo said softly, “What should we do?”  
“We have to get it back,” Sam said, “Or we’re in big trouble.”  
“We should probably ask him about it,” Frodo said, “I mean, he hasn’t done anything wrong, has he?”  
“I guess,” Sam said, but it was clear that he didn’t really agree.  
Frodo then turned his attention to the creature.  
“Hey!” he said, “Could you give that ring back?”  
“No,” the creature said plainly, “It’s my precious…”  
“It belongs to us,” Frodo said, “We need it back!”  
“No,” the creature repeated.  
“Why you little thief…” Frodo muttered under his breath.  
“Gollum is no thief,” the creature said, “Gollum has founds it fair.”  
Frodo sighed, and then turned to Sam.  
“I think it’s time for a different tack,” Sam said.  
The two looked at each other for a moment, and then nodded.  
“All right,” Frodo said, “Three, two one…”  
With the countdown, the two charged at the creature. It tried to fight back and struggled heavily, but was ultimately overpowered by the two Christmas elves. Frodo managed to peel the ring from the creature’s hands, and looked quite triumphant about it.  
“I’ve got it!” he said.  
“But what do we do with him?” Sam asked.  
Gollum was trashing around and shouting angrily about how his belongings had just been stolen. Frodo looked at the creature and immediately decided that they couldn’t just let it go, because it would probably only come after them anyway.  
“We should probably tie him up or something,” Frodo said, “He’s probably not going to be happy with us.”  
Sam nodded, and got some rope out of his bag. Together, Sam and Frodo tied Gollum down, and finally took a moment to catch their breath. Frodo put the ring back into his pocket and let out a relieved sigh.  
“Well, at least that’s settled,” Sam said.  
“Yeah, that could have ended a lot worse,” Frodo said.  
“But we should probably get moving again,” Sam said.  
Expecting Frodo to follow, Sam started to walk away again. However, when he noticed Frodo was still staring at Gollum, Sam turned around to see what his friend was up to.  
“Aren’t you coming, mister Frodo?” Sam asked.  
“We can’t leave him here, can we?” Frodo said.  
“Then what do you say we do with him?” Sam said, “I don’t we should just let him go, then he’ll probably attack us.”  
“We could make an arrangement,” Frodo said, before walking over to Gollum and kneeling in front of him, “Say, do you know where the Sahara Desert is?”  
Gollum thought about this question for a moment and then nodded wildly.  
“Yes, yes,” he said, “Gollum knows! Gollum can show you!”  
“We can let you go, but then you have to promise to bring us there,” Frodo said, “Deal?”  
“Yes,” Gollum said, “Gollum promises.”  
“Is this really a good idea?” Sam asked, but he was mostly ignored by Frodo, who was now undoing Gollum’s bindings.  
Once free again, Gollum quickly darted away, gesturing the others to follow.  
“Come, come,” he said, “Gollum will bring you!”


	7. The Search for Merry and Pippin

As fast as they could, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas ran in the direction of Merry and Pippin. Well, Gimli was more like trying to keep up with his two companions, but that’s beside the point. After some time, they stopped for a moment. Legolas stared into the distance, while Gimli took the time to regain his breath, panting.  
“What do you see?” Aragorn said.  
“They’re taking them further away,” Legolas said, “We should hurry, that way!”  
Aragorn and Legolas darted off, with Gimli following a little slower. They ran and ran, for what seemed like ages but probably was just a day or two, until they finally seemed to get to get closer to rescuing Merry and Pippin. But here the air seemed to thicken and become heavy. The group slowed down and looked around.  
“Is that…” Gimli said, “Is that smoke?”  
They walked on slowly, and then they reached a camp. Or rather, what was left of it. It seemed like there had been a fight here, and possibly a fire too. But most of all it seemed like the shady elves, with Merry and Pippin in tow, had been here, and now there was no trace of the two Christmas elves anymore.  
“What happened here?” Aragorn said.  
“Not sure,” Gimli said, “But it doesn’t seem good.”  
“But then where are Merry and Pippin?” Aragorn said.  
“If this is where they went,” Legolas said, “Then I am afraid something terrible has happened to them.”  
“Oh no,” Aragorn sighed, putting his hands in front of his face. “What do we do?”  
“I don’t know,” Gimli said.  
For a few minutes, they looked around the battlefield, not sure of what to do. They looked at the ruins that had been left, until Aragorn saw something. He rushed towards it, and when he saw what it was, he began to smile.  
“Look guys, tracks!” he said, “They might still be alive.”  
“They must have fled into the forest,” Legolas said.  
“Come on,” Gimli said, “Let’s go check it out!”  
As fast as they could, they ran to the forest, hoping that they would find Merry and Pippin there soon.

 

“Where are we?”  
Merry’s voice echoed off the dense forest. The branches creaked and wind whispered. Something was definitely stirring in this forest.   
“Don’t know,” Pippin said, “Hopefully somewhere safe.”  
“Everything is safer than before,” Merry said, before glancing over his shoulder, “I just hope none of them followed us.”  
“Don’t think they have,” Pippin said, “I think they all scattered in the chaos.”  
“I suppose,” Merry said, but before he could finish his sentence, his attention was taken by a loud noise in front of the two.  
There stood a tremendous creature, much like a tree, but definitely alive. It seemed vaguely humanoid, but only in the sense that it had a face and branches and roots that seemed to work as limbs. Its movements were slow and heavy.  
Merry and Pippin immediately stopped in their tracks, looking at whatever had been blocking their path.  
“Who… are you?” the tree-like creature said, voice low and slow.  
“We are Christmas elves,” Pippin said quickly. He really didn’t want to test the creature’s patience.  
“Christmas elves?” the tree said, “I have not seen those in years. Ages, maybe. Why would you come here?”  
“We’re trying to safe Christmas,” Merry said, “Or, we would be, if we knew where our group was. Anyway, we’d really just like to be on our way again, we need to get to the Sahara Desert.”  
“Hmm,” the tree contemplated, “Why would you go to such a place?”  
“Because we have to!” Pippin said, “We don’t have a choice in this.”  
“Could you please show us the way?” Merry said, “Then we’ll get out of your forest and leave it alone again.”  
“The desert is not a place for elves such as yourself,” the tree said, “You should not go there.”  
“Please?” Pippin tried.  
The tree sighed and looked a little exasperated.  
“I must convene with the others,” he said.

 

Each group travelled their own way, even if they were all headed for the same destination. Frodo, Sam and the creature Gollum stayed in a small settlement temporarily, where they were questioned about what they were doing there. While they did manage to get themselves out of this bind, the three began to argue soon, and Sam left for a different way.  
The trees took their time, but eventually let Merry and Pippin travel through their woods. The two went to where they thought the Sahara Desert lay, hoping to find their travelling companions.  
Following tracks and carefully scanning their environment, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas tried to follow the leads Merry and Pippin had left behind. They snuck through the forest, but it wouldn’t be until the next day that they would find Merry and Pippin, at the outskirts of the forest.  
Gollum betrayed Frodo, and the elf is captured by dark elves. He finds himself in what seemed to be a stronghold, with none of his possessions, and locked away firmly.


	8. The Sahara Desert

Sighing, Frodo looked at only strip of light that could enter his cell. Everything was over now. Everything they fought for, everything they stood for. Everything was gone. There was nothing more he could do.  
Footsteps sounded through the hall. Probably a guard again, Frodo thought. There were guards here all the time, so he wouldn’t be able to escape, even if he could get the lock open.  
“Mister Frodo,” a voice whispered, one that Frodo recognized as Sam’s immediately, even though he was disguised, “I’m coming to rescue you.”  
“It’s no use, Sam,” Frodo said, “It’s too late.”  
“No, you mustn’t give up now,” Sam said, “We still stand a chance.”  
“But Sam,” Frodo said, “I don’t have the ring anymore. They took it from me.”  
“Don’t worry, I’ve got it,” Sam said.  
“You do? Honestly?” Frodo said, “How?”  
“I’ll explain later,” Sam said, “Now we just have to get out of here.”  
Frodo nodded, and Sam fished a key that he had stolen from a guard out of his pocket. He opened the door, and quickly handed Frodo the ring and something to disguise himself with.  
“Quickly, otherwise they’ll see you coming,” Sam said.  
Frodo did as he was told, and soon the two were on their way, sneaking out of the dark fortress.

 

It took some time, but then they did get there: The Sahara Desert. The almost endless streams of sand lay before Sam and Frodo. It wasn’t much longer to go now: the end lay in sight.  
“We’re almost there,” Sam said, “Just a little farther.”  
“Finally,” Frodo said, wiping the sweat off his brow, “It’ll all be over soon.”  
Sam smiled broadly, but Frodo seemed a lot more weary. Still, they trudged on, the heavy sunlight beaming on them. That is, until the cloaked figure blocked their way. Frodo and Sam tried to get out of her way, but she didn’t let them.  
“I’m afraid I cannot let you do that,” she said.  
“But,” Frodo said, “We have to!”  
“No,” the cloaked woman said, “Now, I’ll be taking that ring.”  
Nearing Frodo, Sam tried to stop her. She pushed Sam aside, who staggered and fell. The cloaked figure then took a hold of Frodo’s hand. He fought back valiantly, but there was little he could do.  
“The ring, now!” the cloaked figure said.  
“Never!” Frodo called out.  
“I cannot let you destroy it!” the cloaked figure said.  
They struggled, but in the end Frodo could do nothing but stall. She took the ring from Frodo, and let go off him, laughing softly to herself.  
“Finally, I have it again…” she said.  
Frodo and Sam just watched in terror, unsure of what to do.  
“My wedding ring!” the figure said.  
“What?” Frodo muttered.  
The cloaked figure turned herself to the two Christmas elves and took off her hood, revealing herself to be none other than…  
“Mrs. Claus?” the two elves said in unison.  
“What are you doing here?” Frodo said.  
“What do you need the ring for?” Sam said.  
“You had the wrong one,” Mrs. Claus said, “I accidentally gave the wrong one, but now I’ve come to make up for that mistake.” She took another ring from her pocket, and gently placed it on Frodo’s palm. “Now, finish what you’ve started. You are the one to do this.”  
Frodo looked at Sam, then back to Mrs. Claus and nodded.  
“I will,” Frodo said, standing up slowly and venturing forth into the desert, closely followed by Sam.  
“We’re all counting on you,” Mrs. Claus said, before turning the other way, “Good luck.”

 

In the scorching sun, they had destroyed the ring.  
The last part of the journey had been the hardest. Frodo was weary, and barely able to walk on his own, relying on Sam to help. But in the end, they got there, and Frodo crushed the ring that had been plaguing him. The artefact, reduced to a small half-molten, broken heap of metal, fell to the ground, never to be fixed again.  
“Mister Frodo,” Sam said enthusiastically, “We did it!”  
“We’re done,” Frodo said, sighing a relieved sigh, “Finally. But… How do we get away now?”  
And then a burning light filled the sky, turning the heavens red. It was no longer safe here, that much was obvious. However, the desert spread out in all directions, seemingly infinite. They wouldn’t be able to get out, or not in time, at least.  
But then, as if by magic, the sound of bells filled the air. It had been Santandalf, driving his sleigh of reindeer through the desert. The vehicle came to an abrupt halt in front of Sam and Frodo, and Santandalf gestured them to hop on board.  
“Frodo, Sam,” Santandalf said, “Quickly now.”  
They didn’t have to be told twice. The two Christmas elves jumped onto the sleigh, and held on tight as it took for the sky. While the reindeer galloped through the clouds, Frodo stared into the distance, finally allowing himself to relax and only able to think about one thing.  
It was over.  
It was finally over.


End file.
